tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17499898830005284342024-02-19T05:50:24.739-08:00All Things MastertronicAlex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-88436759628599919012012-08-14T08:39:00.000-07:002012-08-14T12:34:01.092-07:00Batch : Oh ! Really ?<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Several weeks have passed and there has been silence, maybe whispers, but mostly silence. So, what has been happening then? Well, not much really, apart from I have had to make a regretably decision to sell my <b>Commodore 64 Mastertronic</b> collection. I could go into detail about it, but I'd rather not bore with the reasons why. Perhaps some may have seen this coming? Money is always the thing, isn't it? Oh! Space and time as well! Let us not go all sci-fi and get down to the <b><i>photo</i></b> and <b><i>YouTube</i></b> video of the collection in all it's glory!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This has to be a first, a photo of all the Mastertronic Tapes laid out nicely on a table. It took about two hours to haul them all off the shelf they were placed on and put them back. But it was also nice to see them all out and together in one place. So, now we come to the YouTube video ...</span><br />
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<object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Clrog_eQUuU/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Clrog_eQUuU?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Clrog_eQUuU?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Collecting the <b>Mastertronic Tapes</b> has been a real joy and I don't every regret doing so, but there comes a time or a scenario that makes decisions like this difficult. This <b>*whole*</b> collection is on <a href="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/140825205614?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649" target="_blank">eBay</a> for those that are interested and may want to have the chance to bid on it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I would personally like to thank all those that have followed me during this <i><b>All Things Mastertronic Blog</b></i> and helped me out during the process.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until the next time, better times ...</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-24854171975363973872012-06-09T04:39:00.000-07:002012-06-09T04:39:44.990-07:00Batch 42 : Move those Goal Beams !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Whoa ! A few weeks have passed again and there doesn't seemed to have been much activity. But with only a few titles left, it is quieter than normal waiting for them to pop-up or not in some cases. So, here's to the lonely one in this batch ...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">To score is the aim of this game <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=573&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Ballblazer</a>, originally by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucasfilm" target="_blank">Lucasfilm</a> / <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Activision" target="_blank">Activision</a>. A short played, but memorable title played by myself. The unforgettable music, which has been remixed by none other than <a href="http://remix.kwed.org/?search_id=3010" target="_blank">Romeo Knight</a>, legendary to the demo scene for many tunes, including <b>Red Sectors</b> - <i>Cebit'90</i> demo. Title track called - " <a href="http://youtu.be/RVPngm2FcpY" target="_blank">Cream of the Earth</a> ". Well worth a load and play.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ballblazer</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Creeping ever-so slowly to the finish ...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5 A Side Soccer ( <b>Mastertronic Added Dimension</b> )<br />Ultimate Combat Mission ( <b>Mastertronic</b> )<br />How to be a Complete B*stard ( <b>Ricochet</b> )</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I have seen the remaining titles on other platforms like, <b>ZX Spectrum</b> and <b>Amstrad</b>, but as yet not on the <b>Commodore 64.</b> So, the wait could be a long one !</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">If anyone has seen or has spare copies of these games, please let me know. Many thanks !</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-19431016637918733632012-05-14T09:07:00.001-07:002012-05-14T09:07:39.532-07:00Batch 41 : Play it like there's no tomorrow !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So, when was the last time you played it like there was no tomorrow ? A game is a game and although I don't play many of the games that are around today, I certainly played a fair few back in the day. Well, that was a number of years ago, but it was fun then and still is now. Here's to retro computing !</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Here we have three titles that have come my way, including two that I missed an opportunity to get at an earlier date ... </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgERIk2_ahpYiGjlkJ7Y7z-dtS8zr97V71Z1tHLHZyWdW4aNK2sCVHzov3u6ySXAGTeo5OMVnix3R25rI18gnqcQ4b5XxEgBFt3yvOJIDEICuB2saBU9J5lLgaUzpp0DDyfjOkfVrGLrIk/s1600/m-043.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgERIk2_ahpYiGjlkJ7Y7z-dtS8zr97V71Z1tHLHZyWdW4aNK2sCVHzov3u6ySXAGTeo5OMVnix3R25rI18gnqcQ4b5XxEgBFt3yvOJIDEICuB2saBU9J5lLgaUzpp0DDyfjOkfVrGLrIk/s1600/m-043.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We all know <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=6176&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Raid Over Moscow</a>, in this instance it has been called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raid_over_Moscow" target="_blank">Raid</a>. It is still the same game, but with a slightly shortened name. This is another classic game by <i>Bruce Carver</i> of <b>Access Software</b>. <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=7238&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Spore</a> and <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=8207&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Tunnel Vision</a> two titles that I don't remember playing. <i>Spore</i> is quite a perculiar game, but with a fair modest David Whittaker title tune and sound effects. Whilst <i>Tunnel Vision</i> has a classic piece of music " Bach - Toccata in D Minor " and some speech " Attention - Get Ready ". The game isn't too bad and I quite like the 3D Tunnel effect in the game. Worth a look !</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Americana ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Raid</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Bulldog ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Spore</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rack It ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Tunnel Vision</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So, how many are left to get now ?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5 A Side Soccer ( <b>Mastertronic Added Dimension</b> )<br />Ultimate Combat Mission ( <b>Mastertronic</b> )<br />Ball Blazer ( <b>Ricochet</b> )<br />How to be a Complete B*stard ( <b>Ricochet</b> )</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Are they out there ? Who knows ? Until the next time ...</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-50454842191751756652012-05-06T05:05:00.000-07:002012-05-06T05:05:30.598-07:00Batch 40 : Trailblazing towards Anarchy !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I can't believe it is a month since my last blog entry, but we do have six rare titles from a collecting point of view, one of which was kindly found and offered to me as a trade. Also, don't be alarmed with the difference in photo sizes, I recently upgraded my <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTC_Desire" target="_blank">HTC Desire</a> for a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsung_Galaxy_S_II" target="_blank">Samsung Galaxy S2</a> on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_%28operating_system%29" target="_blank">Android</a>. A still, very functionable phone, but with better memory and extra features.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So, a nice mix arcade adventure, shoot'em up and a little bit of strategy with this bunch. Three of the most known titles for me where, <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=295&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Anarchy</a>, <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=3513&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Herobotix</a> and <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=8082&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Trailblazer</a>. Although, I think <i>Trailblazer</i> was played more than anything by me and also, great re-release programmed by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_Fields_%28video_game_developer%29" target="_blank">Shaun Southern</a> of <b>Mr. Chip Software</b> fame. This title was kindly found and offered to me by Mat Corne from the great blog / vlog - " <a href="http://mastertronic64.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Mastertronic Chronicles</a> ". Mat also kindly pointed out, that <i>Alcazar</i> was on the <b>Mastertronic</b> Label and not <b>Americana</b> or <b>Ricochet</b>. At the point of 13 titles listed on my last blog entry, it was difficult to judge then what sub-label it could have been on. But now we know !</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Americana ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Masters of the Universe</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Bulldog::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Jackie and Wide</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Alcazar</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rack It ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Anarchy and Herobotix</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Trailblazer</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Now there are only seven titles left to collect and I wonder how many of these will be easy to get ?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5 A Side Soccer ( <b>Mastertronic Added Dimension</b> )<br />Tunnel Vision ( <b>Rack It</b> )<br />Spore ( <b>Bulldog</b> )<br />Ultimate Combat Mission ( <b>Mastertronic</b> )<br />Raid ( <b>Americana</b> )<br />Ball Blazer ( <b>Ricochet</b> )<br />How to be a Complete B*stard ( <b>Ricochet</b> )</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I have seen a few of these titles on other formats / systems, e.g. Amstrad and ZX Spectrum. Both <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=7238&d=18" target="_blank">Spore</a> and <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=6176&d=18" target="_blank">Raid</a> have appeared in bundles on eBay, but were unfortunately not obtained due to being outbid on or sold out on an online store. I have never seen a copy of <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=2785&d=18" target="_blank">5 A Side Soccer</a> on tape, but there is a disk version on the Mastertronic label through eBay from the United States. I wonder ?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until the next time ...</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-903416211641646602012-04-06T04:12:00.000-07:002012-04-06T04:12:13.344-07:00Batch 39 : Rogue or Romantic ?<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It is Friday and it's good ! Quite literally ... " Good Friday " and after a bit of a pause, I am back with another title for the collection. At this point in time <a href="http://www.slayradio.org/home.php" target="_blank">SlayRadio</a> - " The home of Commodore 64 remixes and original SID's " is playing in the background. I do like listening to other what most people would call, normal music. But basically, Computer music is my favourite. Even the Atari Pokey chip has become a good bit of aural stimulation as well.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCr5yRz6H77x2gnmgl-WwPv-8HQqZd72qYu0E4gPB622zq_AAs7xPAbMIjsL0k0IkY5BLguB_xw3u4qmbyEwHXa_LKLANii61yxgtc6owa3rgXhjr0ax4j5aNhAWI1eSWD1CSg9egUyMw/s1600/m-041.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCr5yRz6H77x2gnmgl-WwPv-8HQqZd72qYu0E4gPB622zq_AAs7xPAbMIjsL0k0IkY5BLguB_xw3u4qmbyEwHXa_LKLANii61yxgtc6owa3rgXhjr0ax4j5aNhAWI1eSWD1CSg9egUyMw/s1600/m-041.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So, <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=6449&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Rogue</a>, a <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=3081&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Gauntlet</a> type of game with nice graphics and unsual game makes it worth a look. A quick load time as well, 55 counters ( 2m 45s ). I am not really a fan of these types of games, but certainly gives you some form of strategy whilst play it.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rogue</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Okay ! So my collection is almost ( sort of ) complete, just a few more titles to go. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Here is a list of the ones I have left to collect :</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5 A Side Soccer ( <b>Mastertronic Added Dimension</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dr Jackel and Mr Wide ( <b>Bulldog</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Anarchy ( <b>Rack It</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Tunnel Vision ( <b>Rack It</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Spore ( <b>Bulldog</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Masters of the Universe ( <b>Ricochet or Americana</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Herobotix ( <b>Rack It</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ultimate Combat Mission ( <b>Mastertronic</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Trailblazer ( <b>Ricochet</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Raid ( <b>Americana</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ball Blazer ( <b>Ricochet</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">How to be a Complete B*stard ( <b>Ricochet</b> )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Alcazar ( <b>Americana or Ricochet</b> )</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Let us hope that these titles are out there, somewhere ...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until next time ...</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-46474685385430816492012-03-24T07:06:00.000-07:002012-03-24T07:06:27.077-07:00Batch 38 : Well I never ...<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Who would have of known it ? There was me thinking that I'd never come across a copy of this title and then suddenly it appeared in a bundle on <b>eBay</b>. You may have read one of my earlier <a href="http://allthingsmastertronic.blogspot.co.uk/2011/07/rare-as-pigs-in-space.html" target="_blank">posts</a> where I had a theory, but now this proves copies are still out there.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2EsgpehPvYHYMl3Gch8x8a74GGuzJ0USfkHQ5QfzgPKTXr5RIxRXKK_1bf7PbzohNC-wcNBDIWk-SA8IgCEEDt6NJi15HadTA1oL3YAifsMGwo7TY3A-bbHg94hCKZ_dCFRcjTvLrKSY/s1600/m-040a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2EsgpehPvYHYMl3Gch8x8a74GGuzJ0USfkHQ5QfzgPKTXr5RIxRXKK_1bf7PbzohNC-wcNBDIWk-SA8IgCEEDt6NJi15HadTA1oL3YAifsMGwo7TY3A-bbHg94hCKZ_dCFRcjTvLrKSY/s1600/m-040a.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Pigs might fly, but they are still around in this sense of the word with <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=5689&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Pigs in Space</a>. As it stands, I am fairly certain that this version is not in the <b>Commodore 64</b> archives. Not even as a .TAP file for use with Emulators. What makes this version unique, is the Turbo Loader and the first or front section with the <b>Mastertronic</b> logo, also with David and Richard Darlings pixel handwriting</span>.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/-zr4ueKxnu8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The above YouTube video shows me loading Pigs in Space and having a little game, which isn't spectactular, but funny at the same time. The overall load time is farily quick and under two minutes.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuBFFQhOghhI0YC-UK4woBsJeiYeZiR3g6YljGozuPHv6XF2GnnHJp7yF7Mt2mqs7h8gNZxwbJwLLGpFblVJg_vC04hU6UuvHxWh07ZsBGP5iTKym4avZNx-3R1-UU017aWjQLvAqSEMo/s1600/m-040b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuBFFQhOghhI0YC-UK4woBsJeiYeZiR3g6YljGozuPHv6XF2GnnHJp7yF7Mt2mqs7h8gNZxwbJwLLGpFblVJg_vC04hU6UuvHxWh07ZsBGP5iTKym4avZNx-3R1-UU017aWjQLvAqSEMo/s1600/m-040b.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I had been looking around for Pigs in Space for over six months and luckily now, I have it. So, with this title, it completes my Blue Gridded 199 Range of <b>Mastertronic</b> games. I hope to get a Photo or perhaps even a video of these for my next blog post.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Pigs in Space</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Fellow collectors ::</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It isn't just me out there, no ! We have a small band of fellow collectors of <b>Mastertronic</b> Titles and over the last few weeks, I have had requests for a Master list of titles. For the next blog post, I will place a link for this list, so anyone can download it and know what titles to collect.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I would also like to mention the <a href="http://mastertronic64.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Mastertronic Chronicles</a> Blog hosted by <b>Mat Corne</b>, which not only notes what titles he is collecting, but it also contains some great gameplay videos so you can see a chosen title in action.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">If there other collectors of <b>Mastertronic</b> titles out there who would a mention about there blog or website, just let me know.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until the next time ... </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></div>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-20574667854676193762012-03-11T04:15:00.000-07:002012-03-11T04:15:00.823-07:00Batch 37 : It's rare, but definitely not the Last Ninja !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Today weather forecast is, definitely warmer than of late and with no surprise snow flurry like last weekend. I am generally glad somethings are starting to look up and it looks like I have found another rare one, well for a <b>Mastertronic</b> sub-label that is. Even if the original version is still out there !</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEianbzsZVaqH0sk2_mcDG4tpqytlHFxeBi2_jTD0kNMJcz9qAXiw3VML4a-hRoULgLaf7_WwtDe4wn2NL8jAYg9fvSQ4qFcF3hNqMlZmXDKzVHJgYy-oNfQtlV5I60_MHwgxlZ2kgd0kPc/s1600/m-039.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEianbzsZVaqH0sk2_mcDG4tpqytlHFxeBi2_jTD0kNMJcz9qAXiw3VML4a-hRoULgLaf7_WwtDe4wn2NL8jAYg9fvSQ4qFcF3hNqMlZmXDKzVHJgYy-oNfQtlV5I60_MHwgxlZ2kgd0kPc/s1600/m-039.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A strange, but fairly addictive ... <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=2453&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">The Eidolon</a> first published by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucasfilm_Games" target="_blank">Lucasfilm Games</a> ( Activision ) ! This 3D maze, shoot'em up certainly keeps you wondering and on your toes. Loading from Tape is a little bit of a bind, but the Disk version certainly makes up for a lot. Well worth a look, especially when the Dragons appear !</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The Eidolon</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Atari ::</span></b><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Well, it's not the Last Ninja, but worth a play and quite similar to the <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=5231&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Commodore 64</a> version. Collect energy, Shuriken Stars and give the enemy a taste of your martial arts and away you go.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE06EQtGV7sAh5aQYFLv9dJROu11aai3nTTYKEg0h-QP__-A354BUloy7PliGhYU5BiqvNnXBUYZxjDfJFbvRuP2_fvcBEEdkeICjd52769opc4yZhkT4PpZTIAzidQDmUWjyW_-M2DNM/s1600/ma-005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE06EQtGV7sAh5aQYFLv9dJROu11aai3nTTYKEg0h-QP__-A354BUloy7PliGhYU5BiqvNnXBUYZxjDfJFbvRuP2_fvcBEEdkeICjd52769opc4yZhkT4PpZTIAzidQDmUWjyW_-M2DNM/s1600/ma-005.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Another thing that makes <a href="http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-ninja_3714.html" target="_blank">Ninja</a> on the <b>Atari</b> especially good, is the music, as it's composed by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rob_Hubbard" target="_blank">Rob Hubbard</a>. It's always nice to hear his renditions on other platforms.</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Entertainment USA ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ninja</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The pace of collecting <i><b>All Things Mastertronic</b></i> may have slowed up, but the eyes and ears are still looking out there !</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until the next time ...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-56891063958298507562012-03-04T04:14:00.000-08:002012-03-04T04:14:22.711-08:00Batch 36 : Who wants to be a Millionaire ? I do ?<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We have rain today and it is not so cold as a few weeks ago. Despite that, we all dream of having lots of money and visiting America, going to Vegas and blowing an obscene amount of money at the Casino's. Well, now you can do part of this in the safety of your own home without losing a penny and getting scared about long haul flights.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuPBmmrv1q-MLZuGqQI7iAV8DVeaeuUeypUM0CtCySKyS1RUT1jNAhk4Yk3SYcQboyql7p8hZqYsbvReCHEcxGwWDtTo0tX9KpWXvYuJlUraJrL5AiI6BiXuBfhk4w_ES0WJ2EVPf59So/s1600/ma-004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuPBmmrv1q-MLZuGqQI7iAV8DVeaeuUeypUM0CtCySKyS1RUT1jNAhk4Yk3SYcQboyql7p8hZqYsbvReCHEcxGwWDtTo0tX9KpWXvYuJlUraJrL5AiI6BiXuBfhk4w_ES0WJ2EVPf59So/s1600/ma-004.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-vegas-jackpot_5651.html" target="_blank">Vegas Jackpot</a> on the Atari plays and feels the same as the <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=8364&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Commodore 64</a> version. The loading time is modest and you can still have a lot of fun with it. Again, this is another <b>Atari</b> addition, there maybe a title or two for the <b>Commodore 64</b> coming up soon.</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Atari ::</span></b><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Vegas Jackpot</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">For those that are curious and interested to know how many and what titles are left ( 19'ish ) to collect for the <b>Commodore 64</b> platform :</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Americana ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Alcazar, Raid and Tunnel Vision</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Bulldog ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dr. Jackel and Mr. Wide and Spore</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Pigs in Space, Ski Writer, 5-a-Side Soccer and Ultimate Combat Mission</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rack It ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Anarchy and Herobotix</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Masters of the Universe, Trailblazer, The Eidolon, Rogue, Ball Blazer, How to be a Complete B**tard</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until the next time ...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-2925230584027466722012-02-26T02:14:00.000-08:002012-02-26T02:14:46.186-08:00Batch 35 : Get some Action on your Bike !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Another sunny sunday and a little <b>Atari</b> love coming your way. Nothing on the <b>Commodore 64</b> front this week, but a cracking conversion from one of the classics. I have decided to combine the different platforms together, so you will have <b>Atari</b> and <b>Commodore 64</b> blogs together. It's quite simple and will add some variation.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEeE_Sp15iSAj-G2ZOCDShFmd5RjKwDM14SV2wOmrAQ-113bDGRtIjMrh5METEtBmANZhh37QXRqnVoiTxyIPJqJe9sx_bX64CQB-cJ677Rt1Q8TUAwecmvM3wER0pXaDIYClGUb2aWE4/s1600/ma-003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEeE_Sp15iSAj-G2ZOCDShFmd5RjKwDM14SV2wOmrAQ-113bDGRtIjMrh5METEtBmANZhh37QXRqnVoiTxyIPJqJe9sx_bX64CQB-cJ677Rt1Q8TUAwecmvM3wER0pXaDIYClGUb2aWE4/s1600/ma-003.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This version of <a href="http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-action-biker_70.html" target="_blank">Action Biker</a> on the <b>Atari 800/130</b> is a great conversion, which even has a rendition of the <a href="http://youtu.be/-c_0fexh700" target="_blank">in-game</a> tune by <b>Rob Hubbard</b>. Despite the slight colour differences, it plays, looks and sounds just the same, as much as the <b>Commodore 64</b>.</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Atari ::</span></b><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic </span>::</b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Action Biker</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">With regards to totals collected for each machine, I will mention them whenever I can. So for this time and so far ...</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Atari 800</b> : <i>11 </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Commodore 64</b> : <i>220</i></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until the next batch ... Pending delivery !</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-68091844993794426212012-02-19T02:40:00.000-08:002012-02-19T02:40:21.626-08:00Batch 34 : A couple of Americanas, plus a dried up puddle !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Well, the sun is out and the temperature has risen by at least 10 degrees since last weekend. Quite a relief really, it was getting pretty cold in the study of my headquarters. And so onto our intriging batch for this time. <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=6568&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Saracen</a> and <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=6342&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Talladega</a>, both rare finds on the <b>Americana</b> label for me. Plus, if you remember from a couple of posts ago, I found a copy of <i>Talladega</i>, but on the <b>TopTen</b> label. At least I have the official release now. <i>Saracen</i> is a great maze type game in two parts, both can be played independently, which is pretty good.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh33UL7MM1qOSg1PUTZVtWwxRnqMi7KBpA5dahjmxz8y11Up0wlOptXT_kSw3AGkYZ56w3CsFjn1NYEsq_ouLueGVru-bBvl4EAwpDwCOwd0yFzZWGG1jMgjXYiQf5Knt1cTFjai-GA8gM/s1600/m-038.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh33UL7MM1qOSg1PUTZVtWwxRnqMi7KBpA5dahjmxz8y11Up0wlOptXT_kSw3AGkYZ56w3CsFjn1NYEsq_ouLueGVru-bBvl4EAwpDwCOwd0yFzZWGG1jMgjXYiQf5Knt1cTFjai-GA8gM/s1600/m-038.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Now we move onto a story in itself really, a story with humorous ending and not so much as a warning, but just a taste of how bizarre collecting can be. It all began with the finding of <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=344&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Aqua</a> by <b>Mr. Chip Software</b> on a cover tape by <b>Mastertronic</b>, to date I cannot remember what Computer Magazine this appeared on. I had completely forgotten about the existence of this, but do recall owning the tape at some point in the early years of my <b>Commodore 64</b> life experience.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga23gMm5yD1VyJT7GAh6QM9vozeeo6O0DOX7T_SMHkz2xlPuNSoGeQuq9wOxmpfDzltmw4AQbh0iKpwxWNcsbTstVIG5MttULPrTOYQ1dfm7D71FGHeRL8DnaC84Mw0oBSZKAsEBrM2Pg/s1600/m-038a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga23gMm5yD1VyJT7GAh6QM9vozeeo6O0DOX7T_SMHkz2xlPuNSoGeQuq9wOxmpfDzltmw4AQbh0iKpwxWNcsbTstVIG5MttULPrTOYQ1dfm7D71FGHeRL8DnaC84Mw0oBSZKAsEBrM2Pg/s1600/m-038a.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">On Friday 17th February 2012, I decided to video my experience with this find and recorded a <span id="goog_357410553"></span>YouTube<span id="goog_357410554"></span> video for you to watch and enjoy.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://2.gvt0.com/vi/MZ1O_dh5l0I/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MZ1O_dh5l0I&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MZ1O_dh5l0I&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">As I explain in the video, you do sometimes encounter unexpected perils and surprises during collecting.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Americana ::</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Saracen and Talladega</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Aqua</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The grand total of titles collected so far, is : <i>220</i> ... Less than twenty to go ?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Atari ::</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We have two additions for the <b>Atari</b> this time, <a href="http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-gridrunner_6095.html" target="_blank">Grid Runner</a> and <a href="http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-one-man-and-his-droid_3794.html" target="_blank">One Man and His Droid</a>. A real nice couple of gems indeed.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoyV69wgYXb_Jq0Ogwn5kNU2e0kySQsR6gY7LDPAvMeuv5GjzT1HfIHL6SVspmuL9eAoSGWsGZrrnAVyM4tThjiEANTP9QX-VmKXhlgb6pidiBFI3UzG8NlUM01R9VFiDYeYaG5WcvtSY/s1600/ma-002a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoyV69wgYXb_Jq0Ogwn5kNU2e0kySQsR6gY7LDPAvMeuv5GjzT1HfIHL6SVspmuL9eAoSGWsGZrrnAVyM4tThjiEANTP9QX-VmKXhlgb6pidiBFI3UzG8NlUM01R9VFiDYeYaG5WcvtSY/s1600/ma-002a.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://youtu.be/6alROxoWLsE" target="_blank"><i>Grid Runner</i> </a>is your typical shoot'em up from the stables of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Minter" target="_blank">Jeff Minter</a> with great sound effects and visuals. <a href="http://youtu.be/6FkTsUotgOY" target="_blank"><i>One Man and His Droid</i></a> is very similar to the Commodore 64 version, but with what sounds like the soundtrack to <a href="http://youtu.be/dcUw-Ftk_VM" target="_blank">Finders Keepers</a> for the Title.<b> </b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I quite like collecting Atari 800 Mastertronic titles, even though there maybe less to collect than the Commodore 64, it's all good fun anyway !</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until the batch ... </span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-27807331317142659202012-02-11T03:18:00.000-08:002012-02-11T03:18:23.721-08:00Batch 33 : Additions, replacements and tales from the darkside !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It's officially cold outside again and there was a little snow during the week, just to make things more interesting. With all that in mind, it's warm inside and the coffee is on and away we go with another post.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I managed to get a replacement for <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=703&d=18&h=0" target="_blank"><i>Beach Head II</i></a>, it loads on both sides, against the other copy that doesn't load at all. The only downside, is the tape label is torn on the right side. Probably due to a sticker being there and it was ripped off.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI_VemRmib6S4gK9pzlgznpFeb-_unrmf4dzI2b0LEqOeNjtncb7PcbqimVT1gnqRGydX6ZUy6Agw27o2DOAztCgjRHM5MGot_ODDRTDLWTEeanBSQyqrqp9FzOLarPG_JzE3pjtNscdA/s1600/m-037a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI_VemRmib6S4gK9pzlgznpFeb-_unrmf4dzI2b0LEqOeNjtncb7PcbqimVT1gnqRGydX6ZUy6Agw27o2DOAztCgjRHM5MGot_ODDRTDLWTEeanBSQyqrqp9FzOLarPG_JzE3pjtNscdA/s1600/m-037a.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When you are collecting rare items, especially in this instance, you will encounter different qualities. There are a number of tapes out there, that are very good condition and there will be those, that are not. None of the tapes in my collection are mint, they are used and all work very well, apart from a few. For a tape to last nearly 30 years and still work after being stored in varied conditions, is simply, quite remarkable.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We have two more additions, <i>Blackwyche</i> and <i>Subterranea</i>. Both great games, <i>Blackwyche</i> being an arcade adventure and <i>Subterranea</i> being a great little shoot'em up with some cool music by <a href="http://noname.c64.org/csdb/sid/?id=10738" target="_blank">Jonathon Dunn</a>.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizgPn8TfuIggVxvZbYd2BjH2CAAvgT4sf-Uscg3jKBRcXmtyqmrEGIQUy2Z2UdMMiLyFZmpK3E3tOG5TetJpnBqooopu2Op1oXIvYtsPKEr5md2io1n97_5L0g0g0-Ouzmp9ZRVBcyctE/s1600/m-037.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizgPn8TfuIggVxvZbYd2BjH2CAAvgT4sf-Uscg3jKBRcXmtyqmrEGIQUy2Z2UdMMiLyFZmpK3E3tOG5TetJpnBqooopu2Op1oXIvYtsPKEr5md2io1n97_5L0g0g0-Ouzmp9ZRVBcyctE/s1600/m-037.jpg" /></a></div><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rack It ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Subterranea</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Blackwyche</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Tales from the Darkside</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There really isn't anything to concern or worry yourself here, but just to inform you, that I am now collecting <b>Mastertronic</b> titles for the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari_8-bit_family" target="_blank">Atari 800</a>. Are you still there ?</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDTHidjXEFp0Vw-i3esSGYNrRQIKUGIe_bKOD6H13gbiCpsOv76ZyhITlXCW2QqgJ5Rg9pem-JSoKZ-DOfteiVwYPg9UiAOjlXuIp17MrR5qUJKMIPxt5KtkRXe7KzE6vlpHUzCh8zKWQ/s1600/m-037b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDTHidjXEFp0Vw-i3esSGYNrRQIKUGIe_bKOD6H13gbiCpsOv76ZyhITlXCW2QqgJ5Rg9pem-JSoKZ-DOfteiVwYPg9UiAOjlXuIp17MrR5qUJKMIPxt5KtkRXe7KzE6vlpHUzCh8zKWQ/s1600/m-037b.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Far from the squabbles over many years ago at school, when we would all brag about whos computer was better than the other and all that jazz. Today, it's all about retro computing and having a play at those machines that we once saw, but never had the change to own or use. Luckily, I obtained this <b>Atari 800 XL</b> through a good friend, but not until a few months ago, did I have a place for it. By chance of fate, I was lucky enough to get donated a bundle of tapes for different computers and quite amazingly there was some <b>Mastertronic</b> titles amongst them as well.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6C_4op0IHNg1dQbvJnBC4DWByNSCRPRXmn_PalDihnotCnU07JfVqxfc7Z1T8EJO_TQzEfCOSVuFmXvwCHCOiblzoAba6E7AZS4GeGPafTxTAqleB-PMqRA66Wy1MbvbnPCC9gvSLolM/s1600/ma-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6C_4op0IHNg1dQbvJnBC4DWByNSCRPRXmn_PalDihnotCnU07JfVqxfc7Z1T8EJO_TQzEfCOSVuFmXvwCHCOiblzoAba6E7AZS4GeGPafTxTAqleB-PMqRA66Wy1MbvbnPCC9gvSLolM/s1600/ma-001.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I was also kindly informed by someone on the <a href="http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/193668-the-mighty-axles-collection/" target="_blank">Atari Age forum</a>, that there is around 30 tapes for the <b>Atari 800</b>, so not as many as the <b>Commodore 64</b>. You maybe asking yourselves now, will I be collecting for additional machines ? My answer at the moment would be no, only the Atari now. I think lack of room and storage space for one, but I'd love to have more machines in a special retro study or room.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Bulldog ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Feud</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Entertainment USA ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Los Angeles S.W.A.T.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Attack of the Mutant Camels, Despatch Rider, Henry's House, Kikstart and Universal Soldier.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic Added Dimension ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">180</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until the next batch ... Coming soon !</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-72705039294803426842012-02-03T07:04:00.000-08:002012-02-03T07:04:50.006-08:00Batch 32 : I am ... The LAW !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Whether we like it or not, there always has to be laws and rules. Some follow and others ignore ! But if you have someone like <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=3977&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Judge Dredd</a> and his fellow officers around, you are sure to be in for quite an experience. This nice bundle of seven tapes for the collection, really gives a broad range of gaming styles and quality</span>.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWA8Ejvabw5LNVL5pH_I_4vY6jrwtYFgs04NQoLi0Jm-5at7J3XQtfMM-Rg_wtwSoZkC6AHv6mGlAeN4MwhT-pIgE-lvRzy5cpVx9Rcy0Z6e_TO9gjTpxEgt-UqLUs7bZiCMlr5eD1Dhg/s1600/m-036.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWA8Ejvabw5LNVL5pH_I_4vY6jrwtYFgs04NQoLi0Jm-5at7J3XQtfMM-Rg_wtwSoZkC6AHv6mGlAeN4MwhT-pIgE-lvRzy5cpVx9Rcy0Z6e_TO9gjTpxEgt-UqLUs7bZiCMlr5eD1Dhg/s1600/m-036.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=5491&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Outlaws</a> is fun rootin' tootin' Cowboy game with classic double-sized sprites and pretty good gameplay as well. A typically classic game, when first released by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultimate_Play_the_Game" target="_blank"><b>Ultimate</b></a> <i>Play the Game</i>. As mentioned before, Judge Dredd is great little game with all the production traits of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krome_Studios_Melbourne" target="_blank"><b>Melbourne House</b></a> on its re-release on the <b>Ricochet</b> label. Most, if not all games always had colourful graphics, big sprites and very distinctive music. You really must check out The Legend of the Amazon Women, again, a re-release on the <b>Mastertronic</b> label. The game is okay, if a little slow at times.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Some of these titles are rare, as in, I haven't seen many copies floating around on eBay or other online stores. But never give up any chances of checking out charity shops, car boot fairs or the like, because you never know what might crop up. Even if most of these outlets sell Console games.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Bulldog ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Colony</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic Added Dimension ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Pastfinder</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Legend of the Amazon Women and Rollaround.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rack It ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Thunderforce</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Judge Dredd and Outlaws.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The total collected so far ... </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><i>216</i></b></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> ... is getting pretty close to the completed target ! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There is another pending delivery is on its way ... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-74821562505064824382012-01-28T03:37:00.000-08:002012-01-28T03:37:43.422-08:00Batch 31 : Famous Five ... On holiday in the sun ?<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I first saw the title <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=2666&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Famous Five</a> in the list of <b>Mastertronic</b> titles to collect, I instantly thought it might be connected to a graphic text adventure with a similar name. Of course <i>Famous Five</i> is purely a compilation of '<i>Five Superb Games in One Mega Pack </i>' and has nothing to do with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enid_Blyton" target="_blank">Enid Blytons</a> title of works.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs45pg07Y2tPtpFs-LZTYUtPJ_lBbjtF5bIuceswFyCtozcKLFMCKB1RqU066SMghXWm3f_ewpmpt9u6pdlbHSRIeis-AWd6qVAgtNCnTzaRbUg8W52jxhbYQc6bHSOycDgPsOfGNq8NA/s1600/m-035.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs45pg07Y2tPtpFs-LZTYUtPJ_lBbjtF5bIuceswFyCtozcKLFMCKB1RqU066SMghXWm3f_ewpmpt9u6pdlbHSRIeis-AWd6qVAgtNCnTzaRbUg8W52jxhbYQc6bHSOycDgPsOfGNq8NA/s1600/m-035.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And with another cool sub-label title, we have <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=7554&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Sunburst</a>. A shoot'em up with nice 360 degree movement and sound effects. Watch out for the asteroid showers though !</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Famous Five</i> : Amaurote, Invasion, Knucklebusters, Milk Race and Motos.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rack It ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Sunburst</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The next batch may contain some surprises. All pending until they arrive !</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-12764971417858503112012-01-21T03:37:00.000-08:002012-01-21T03:37:23.742-08:00Batch 30 : Sport and Strategy ?<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">With sport, there is strategy. Both together, you have a winning combination, but that all depends on how you play.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitDIr8DKGe3keyb3SYZY2fHb23AFAfkDswHzY2XLnNwRvAqvXgYVTS0AtTFXcckGcg0W13hID0Ls3Dm_Gs3t4RLwCAxiUHigAocJ46FOADXodrdB9n3WxgZe_LUVhxW_OMa7N7rKKvy6E/s1600/m-34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitDIr8DKGe3keyb3SYZY2fHb23AFAfkDswHzY2XLnNwRvAqvXgYVTS0AtTFXcckGcg0W13hID0Ls3Dm_Gs3t4RLwCAxiUHigAocJ46FOADXodrdB9n3WxgZe_LUVhxW_OMa7N7rKKvy6E/s1600/m-34.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Out of all the Tennis games on the <b>Commodore 64</b>, <a href="http://gb64.com/game.php?id=4303&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Grand Prix Tennis</a> or <i>Lawn Tennis</i> as the Title Screen proudly states, is one of my favourites with cool music by <a href="http://noname.c64.org/csdb/sid/?id=4150" target="_blank">Jason C. Brooke</a>. Ironically, it is by <b>Mastertronic</b> as well. I think it's an easy game to get into and is fun to play. <a href="http://gb64.com/game.php?id=5388&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">On Court Tennis</a> by <b>Activision</b> is okay as well, but a favourite is a favourite. With <a href="http://gb64.com/game.php?id=3826&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Invasion</a>, we have a sort of strategy type game. Again, I am not a big fan of these. But as with all the games, try them out ! You might just like them !</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Bulldog ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Invasion</span><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic Added DImension ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Grand Prix Tennis ( Lawn Tennis )</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Currently in transit, another batch for next time ... </span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-75888497227963265092012-01-14T04:46:00.000-08:002012-01-16T12:30:59.092-08:00Batch 29 : Sign-up, get funky, is it this one and what ???<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We've entered 2012 ( twenty-twelve ) and continue I go, collecting all I can with ... " All Things Mastertronic ". Just a couple of tapes this time and a what ? Yes ! A what ! Something that I am trying to work out and reason to myself why this happened and was seemingly allowed. Slipped throught net and then possibly hauled in again ?</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO-4z8ZL_cPXwmGxF96LMbIFbYE8Giqrds5CqbBWpYaa2FGQflHBnhqX7sukxo1-G9lDqXNDeQ1Be1T1KQCeBRIR0lHNCSOWgzwaZ8SB8FB0etKq_1yLhvrWL55R4HVbAzTT-1wwJ7_e4/s1600/m-033.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO-4z8ZL_cPXwmGxF96LMbIFbYE8Giqrds5CqbBWpYaa2FGQflHBnhqX7sukxo1-G9lDqXNDeQ1Be1T1KQCeBRIR0lHNCSOWgzwaZ8SB8FB0etKq_1yLhvrWL55R4HVbAzTT-1wwJ7_e4/s1600/m-033.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> So, we have ... <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=6231&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Raw Recruit</a> ! A nice little <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=1591&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Combat School</a> type-clone with some cool music by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Follin" target="_blank">Tim Follin</a>. The game doesn't feel as difficult to play as <i>Combat School</i>, but worth a load-up and listen to. As with <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=7466&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Street Beat</a>, it's really <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=3122&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Ghettoblaster</a> ! Just a bit of a change with the title screen and music, all for the re-release on the Mastertronic label. Funky music too !</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Streetbeat</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic Added Dimension ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Raw Recruit</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Is it this one ?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Some of you might be aware, that I am collecting games occording to the list that <a href="http://www.guter.org/mastertronic_history.htm" target="_blank">Anthony Guter</a> kindly sent me. Now that I have collected over 200 titles of the 230+, the availability of some are harder to come by. As with a concern from an earlier post, someone is bound to cash in on rarer titles knowing there are collectors out there or the title is rare because copies have been thrown out and only a few copies exist. Last week I found a copy of <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=6342&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Talladega</a> ( Richard Petty's ). It was originally release by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmi_Corporation" target="_blank">Cosmi</a> . <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U_S_Gold" target="_blank">U.S. Gold</a>, but appears on the list. So, would this be on the <b>Americana</b> or <b>Ricochet</b> label ? Well, I found a copy of it on the " Top Ten " label. There is no <i>Novaload</i> or any other fancy loader, just a regular turbo loader with coloured lines.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXTsGgqpWIy0f5Z79Gz3p0Qi7N8siU0Itf_MX5Cz_swUH-nm4gdHcGMoFu-cINJCjBm9uoUnOU04KoaGcC0qHNabtRxXyNSdkybnkDxYMbOFO1vw_84WIBJS9C5IlfOd9E1dzRBXkJ_bw/s1600/m-033a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXTsGgqpWIy0f5Z79Gz3p0Qi7N8siU0Itf_MX5Cz_swUH-nm4gdHcGMoFu-cINJCjBm9uoUnOU04KoaGcC0qHNabtRxXyNSdkybnkDxYMbOFO1vw_84WIBJS9C5IlfOd9E1dzRBXkJ_bw/s1600/m-033a.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So, perhaps <i>Talladega</i> was released three times or was it only twice ? Until another copy from a different label surfaces, I will never know or will I ?</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">What ???</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Again, working through the list, I have been investigating some titles via emulation. One that took my eye was <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=8291&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Ultimate Combat Mission</a>. This was released by <b>Mastertronic</b> and coded by <i>Richard Aplin</i>, also famous for <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=3844&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Island of Doctor Destructo</a> and the fantastic loader games, <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=3821&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Invade-a-load</a> and <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=4415&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Load'n Play</a>. But what caught my eye more than most with <i>Ultimate Combat Mission</i>, was it had a few things that not many commercial games had, other parts of games or peoples work. What ??? Yes ! The Font from <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=6198&d=18&h=0" target="_blank"><i>Rambo - First Blood Part II</i></a> by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_Software" target="_blank">Ocean</a> and Sprites from <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=1602&d=18&h=0" target="_blank"><i>Commando</i></a> by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elite_Systems" target="_blank">Elite</a>. There was also a bitmap font from another game, but the name passes me at the moment. The music was by <a href="http://noname.c64.org/csdb/sid/?id=3923" target="_blank">Steve Barret</a>. What a great tune it is !</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The style of game and it's contents is rather like the <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=1728&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Crackers Revenge</a> style. Creative in taking contents from other games, but forming parts together into a commercial release is a bit cheeky. I would be very surprised that any software house would allow it, unless permission was granted ? I have a feeling the game may have been pulled off the market.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Just as I was finishing up this post, another tape arrived in the mail. Something for next time ...</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-36935499241613906782011-12-24T10:40:00.000-08:002011-12-24T10:40:21.368-08:00Batch 28 : A *big* one and a surprise !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ho-Ho-Ho ! Dashing through the snow ... ( cough ! ) Ah ! It's time for another batch, racing past the 200 Tape postmark and with a surprise to boot as well. Just in time really for this festive post.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMtOa-q66uFx1-ur7FXT78gYGChunfijch6fftMRco9jqg6rtviZIzzLYVjJXjehrELE1EenGjQGghwv9YAXOvhwq1A7K5DHxoYm_oaFETK7V8xMemgemQSqSwP5Zd5xw7KNgqdAsqbPQ/s1600/m-032.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMtOa-q66uFx1-ur7FXT78gYGChunfijch6fftMRco9jqg6rtviZIzzLYVjJXjehrELE1EenGjQGghwv9YAXOvhwq1A7K5DHxoYm_oaFETK7V8xMemgemQSqSwP5Zd5xw7KNgqdAsqbPQ/s1600/m-032.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Although, we only have four Tapes, most of this batch has a sporting theme. <i>Hole-in-One</i> is a classic Golf game, although not in the same league as <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=4316&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Leaderboard Golf</a>, it's still a pretty cool game all the same. <i>Sport of Kings</i> is a run of the mill Horse Racing game that steadies you from splashing out on the hard cash in a betting form. Both <i>Hole-in-One</i> and <i>Sport of Kings</i> have nice colourful graphics, even if they look a little basic. Still bags of fun though ! <i>Vectorball</i> is football / soccer, score a goal in the opposing teams side type of game. Nice vector graphics though and it feels like <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=7214&d=18&h=0" target="_blank"><i>Spindizzy</i></a> might have inspired the game players a little.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Vectorball</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic Added Dimension ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ball Crazy, Hole in One and Sport of Kings.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Now it's time for a little surprise ! I found ( bought ) a copy of <i>Water Polo</i> on the <b>Mastertronic</b> Label, but on Disk. Technically, it isn't part of my mission to collect titles on Disk, but it was cheap enough and I thought I would check it out. I have come to the conclusion though, that this title has been released at least twice.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheqvNVCtAj_edzRXzdtyoPilM7b7QeOEm2StP17p23l7GmPmv8qSk8bRq3NFShinDAbyZJRzfY8yx0l-3nol1gMv_HBDvr4E9yz3n_ajmocAabU1rQQ3pxvNe82U9ZalalPaDQkbsUcpk/s1600/m-032a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheqvNVCtAj_edzRXzdtyoPilM7b7QeOEm2StP17p23l7GmPmv8qSk8bRq3NFShinDAbyZJRzfY8yx0l-3nol1gMv_HBDvr4E9yz3n_ajmocAabU1rQQ3pxvNe82U9ZalalPaDQkbsUcpk/s1600/m-032a.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The other software house that released it, was <a href="http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=8521&d=18&h=0" target="_blank">Gremlin</a>. Despite this Disk, Box and Instructions being around 25 years old, it's done remarkably well. I took the liberty of creating an <a href="http://www.arisfamily.co.uk/alex/m-tronic/mt_wpolo.d64" target="_blank">image</a> file for use with an emulator like <a href="http://vice-emu.sourceforge.net/" target="_blank">Vice</a>. So, you can see, it seems to be a rare release by <b>Mastertronic</b> and I have not yet encountered a copy on Tape. As far as I am aware, no other sites have an copy of this version, just the <b>Gremlin</b> one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So, we have actually reached ... 203 Tapes, leaving the few that maybe tough cookies to obtain next year, but we will see what crops up. Until the next batch, see you then.</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-47629314094794628632011-12-17T06:02:00.000-08:002011-12-17T06:09:13.261-08:00Batch 27 : Short of another *BIG* one<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Well, we are rolling up to another *big* one ! Hopefully, if the next batch of Tapes arrives before Christmas, the grand total will be ... 203 with only 30 or so to go. So, out of the remaining Tapes, I reckon that about 12 will be tricky to get hold of. I know I might have mentioned this before, but you can see it happening.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxqia4Uw5YyHxrKcmKRo6u54-1UG65NfS17u0fxePtSRAv_4MNNzLdj4Q9teT_sKIEC6ZTiKooY7VidURyJ9pSOQfX6v3Z-Al4-y3DhOFnaOufZE3FKf7iIYDjO8dqI9KR2AlWElfALdI/s1600/m-031.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxqia4Uw5YyHxrKcmKRo6u54-1UG65NfS17u0fxePtSRAv_4MNNzLdj4Q9teT_sKIEC6ZTiKooY7VidURyJ9pSOQfX6v3Z-Al4-y3DhOFnaOufZE3FKf7iIYDjO8dqI9KR2AlWElfALdI/s1600/m-031.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This batch contains a nice selection of shoot'em ups, a platformer and a nice Pool and Snooker game, <i>On Cue</i>. <i>P.O.D.</i> ( Proof of Destruction ) is a great little shoot'em up, perfect for releasing any stress through blasting away the baddies. It's also, another great game from the <b>Shaun Southern</b> stable, who is also responsible for giving us <i>Vegas Jackpot</i>, <i>Kikstart</i> and <i>Lotus</i> on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amiga" target="_blank"><b>Amiga</b></a> under the company name of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_Fields_%28computer_game_developer%29" target="_blank">Magnetic Fields</a>.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Hyperforce, P.O.D., Prowler and Rasterscan.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic Added Dimension ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">On Cue and Wizards Pet.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5th Quadrant.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Hold on to your Hats and get ready for the next batch coming soon ...</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-86448089594984895042011-12-11T07:17:00.000-08:002011-12-11T07:17:44.894-08:00Batch 26 : I am strong and into Budgies !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">" I'm a Lumberjack and I'm okay " ... Immortal words as sung by the <i><a href="http://youtu.be/sZa26_esLBE" target="_blank">Monty Python</a></i> crew. But also one of the sub-songs in <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoff_Capes" target="_blank">Geoff Capes</a> Strongman</i> as translated to the great Commodore 64 SID by <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rob_Hubbard" target="_blank">Rob Hubbard</a></i>.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiswvOj7ZKj9BdGN1G-Ayhc9_zKKWGzzKtbzEb-Kx20hybfCTDVHhNJce-lZBEjHftmLmAZNRgkpsWaxS9zs-7bsM6hjpfeiZsKKLBViTSSXRU50YC3f_jJV0PauKXWtoTkbleN6tjuDaY/s1600/m-030.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiswvOj7ZKj9BdGN1G-Ayhc9_zKKWGzzKtbzEb-Kx20hybfCTDVHhNJce-lZBEjHftmLmAZNRgkpsWaxS9zs-7bsM6hjpfeiZsKKLBViTSSXRU50YC3f_jJV0PauKXWtoTkbleN6tjuDaY/s1600/m-030.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Did you know that Geoff Capes keeps and breeds <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budgies" target="_blank">Budgies</a> ? It might seem like an unusual hobby, but what an excellent one, for one of Great Britains Strongmen.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Geoff Capes Strongman</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Hopefully, there should be another batch or two before the end of 2011 ... Until then ! </span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-89362387513576962582011-12-03T03:49:00.000-08:002011-12-03T03:49:06.467-08:00Batch 25 : One of the earlier ones !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At last ! I have managed to get hold of one the earlier ones, from 1984 ! That would be <i>Orbitron</i>, another game with what appears to have the trademark and feeling of an early <b>David</b> and <b>Richard Darling</b> production. It's tricky to play and for some reason you just want to better your last attempt all the time. If you think about it, it's pure genius, create a game creation engine or tool and churn out stuff for all to play and cuss over. I don't think it really mattered then, I was more for buying and playing budget games. Not leaving out the games that cost up to £15, even back in the 1980's.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhav-66fG2MG0j8UVKrjShY7GyDsUTBXxG6ySLQ_bHjX1TPzWVsBt8Yzn2D9HcR8ZhncDs6mqIg3P6jXxtD154q3pDaEWzVbfeuIdmR7ETrCtJ80i2_y_8VwP-kqfW6r2dABcDBPLjtCk/s1600/m-029.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhav-66fG2MG0j8UVKrjShY7GyDsUTBXxG6ySLQ_bHjX1TPzWVsBt8Yzn2D9HcR8ZhncDs6mqIg3P6jXxtD154q3pDaEWzVbfeuIdmR7ETrCtJ80i2_y_8VwP-kqfW6r2dABcDBPLjtCk/s1600/m-029.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> I don't seem to remember <i>Camelot Warriors</i>, it's another re-release and appears to be from <b>Ariolasoft</b> / <b>Dinamic</b>. For some reason, I kept thinking of <i>Sacred Armour or Antiraid</i>. Perhaps it was the suit ?</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Camelot Warriors and Orbitron.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until the next batch ... </span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-65314086778628208632011-11-27T07:17:00.000-08:002011-11-27T07:17:41.790-08:00Batch 24 : Another Visitor ... Now, then ! Now, then !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Everyone loves most Saturdays and I for one, especially on BBC1 around Tea Time ( 4pm or 5pm ) when <a href="http://youtu.be/neCP_xu18k8" target="_blank">Jim'll Fix It</a> was on back in the 1980's. Alas, poor <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Savile" target="_blank">Sir Jimmy Saville</a>, the presenter for <i>Jim'll Fit It</i>, past away in October 2011, but we'll never forget him ! This a link to the game <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Trolley" target="_blank">Super Trolley</a> where it </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">was developed after a wish by <i>Andrew Collett</i> was sent to the television programme.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRY8DBfswD24R__vwGMzO_Dw0tnH6JxqaFsEcEwVOOEMVJleMeggEaRyPicAPVXYHXAo7QxF6k-Nm4BeyEp0hcfRdVIQZyIsf9bt5u5oQD1QbhtM3g5shcTjpPkKjZimDJE9nIOog6XVg/s1600/m-028.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRY8DBfswD24R__vwGMzO_Dw0tnH6JxqaFsEcEwVOOEMVJleMeggEaRyPicAPVXYHXAo7QxF6k-Nm4BeyEp0hcfRdVIQZyIsf9bt5u5oQD1QbhtM3g5shcTjpPkKjZimDJE9nIOog6XVg/s1600/m-028.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Now, then ! <i>Super Trolley</i> is a game I simply don't understand. I have tried to play it, if only for a few minutes. Although, nowadays I tend to only play games that are easy to get into and don't require to much thought.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Another pleasing addition to the collection, is <i>Impossible Mission</i>. A true classic from the 1980's with amazing Speech Synthesis, well worth the money then and now.</span><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rapid Fire, Super Trolley and Treasure Island.</span><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Impossible Mission.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Coming soon and in progress ... <b>Batch 25</b> !</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-69555567767634559102011-11-19T01:07:00.000-08:002011-11-19T01:07:31.386-08:00Batch 23 : Adventures we do !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">What's life without a little adventure ? Boring or just plain tiring ? I didn't realise that <b>Mastertronic</b> had released that many adventure titles. Thankfully, most of the modern day ones or at the time of release, had a bit more than just text. Not saying that pure text adventures are boring and have no depth, but by adding some graphical aspects too, makes everything more interesting.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEqRL9i-E2XK9houkjrDRe_rtqlQR672BqdUy9d0mfk7MxX9rl5thXKu6yVPhsRPVe63T8r0ex7zW7JTOb74x5XN1fTRrOP1gKQAJq7Ey7TMbd8SrPjL1QD5WifjWY-k6JnVwiThT7kFQ/s1600/m-027.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEqRL9i-E2XK9houkjrDRe_rtqlQR672BqdUy9d0mfk7MxX9rl5thXKu6yVPhsRPVe63T8r0ex7zW7JTOb74x5XN1fTRrOP1gKQAJq7Ey7TMbd8SrPjL1QD5WifjWY-k6JnVwiThT7kFQ/s1600/m-027.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Although, the game <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knightmare" target="_blank"><i>Knightmare</i></a> is like an arcade adventure, I would still place it into the adventure genre. It's also based on a Television Programme from the 1980's and 1990's.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Majik</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Knightmare</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rolling towards another Batch soon ... It's won't be long until the 200 mark is met !</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-54153521455532765312011-11-12T03:37:00.000-08:002011-11-12T03:37:51.688-08:00Batch 22 : Hello Again ... Dan Dare !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In a bizarre twist of fate I managed to get a sequel before a prequel ! No ! What I mean is, I got <i>Dan Dare II</i>, before <i>Dan Dare</i>. Apparently, there was a third <i>Dan Dare</i>, but not a re-release on the Mastertronic Label or even it's sub labels. I quite like the graphics in <i>Dan Dare</i>, they are clean and cartoony at the same time.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPzzOJslCXE4OyhgnAXZIDYpkhqk1jYdXDsKxLRJC8wAqQx0T5duNlS_Y1VtNcu3scEpAON32CQAIveR4p7AWq84wBuVmwG5NPE9LT6JV37n0dHmf63wpG_8YUsNxhMRWFUv8Rblyd2s8/s1600/m-026.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPzzOJslCXE4OyhgnAXZIDYpkhqk1jYdXDsKxLRJC8wAqQx0T5duNlS_Y1VtNcu3scEpAON32CQAIveR4p7AWq84wBuVmwG5NPE9LT6JV37n0dHmf63wpG_8YUsNxhMRWFUv8Rblyd2s8/s1600/m-026.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We also have <i>X-15 Alpha Mission</i>, a Flight Simulator type-game. I am not a big fan of this genre, I used to be many years ago with Solo Flight by Microprose / US Gold, being my top favourite. All I want to do in games now, is shoot or jump !</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dan Dare and X-15 Alpha Mission</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Batch 23 will be around to warm your hearts soon ... </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Current Total in collection now, is : [ <b>184</b> ]</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-26303625462645989612011-11-05T04:29:00.000-07:002011-11-05T04:30:41.093-07:00Batch 21 : Ooo ... Laser Cycle-type-Tron !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Well, it's November 5th '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Fawkes" target="_blank">Guy Fawkes Day</a>' ! No doubt there will be lots of Fireworks going off tonight, even though, some have been going off days before ! Quite a common occurance to be honest ! So, what do we have this time ? A Laser Cycle-type-Tron and great little Stock Car Racing game with great visuals and cool Sprites !</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_-b-1ukFOy1a4gQ3xXMXhzNBh7bjvZKfy4_FC9AWLYcA58L0G2z_7jT495VVOMvObfDVU9IZVPOArnAGkthP2No1EWxGJo8_7Y50QpWaKxitJ1QI-eK5bxj6Fq57Kgar0CgW5H-R0crk/s1600/m-025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_-b-1ukFOy1a4gQ3xXMXhzNBh7bjvZKfy4_FC9AWLYcA58L0G2z_7jT495VVOMvObfDVU9IZVPOArnAGkthP2No1EWxGJo8_7Y50QpWaKxitJ1QI-eK5bxj6Fq57Kgar0CgW5H-R0crk/s1600/m-025.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> I hope you like the different backdrop for the Photo, taken on the <b>Commodore 128</b> with a Dust Cover adding a nice background. The <b>Commodore 64c</b> has been put away, as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari_8-bit_family" target="_blank"><b>Atari 800 XL</b></a> is in it's place. Perhaps I could start collecting <i>Mastertronic Tapes</i> for the <b>Atari</b> ? I think I should need more storage space and funds though. </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic Plus ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Raster Runner and Super Stock Car.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Until the next Batch ...</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-48776042099480784712011-10-22T06:25:00.000-07:002011-10-22T06:25:43.869-07:00Batch 20 : Turbo Loaders<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Where would we have been, without Turbo Loaders on games ? Slightly more bored or a greater reason to sleep unlike Cats who seem to do that most of their lives ? Well, anything to speed up the time in waiting for your favourite game to load, isn't that bad ? Three questions in the first paragraph is asking for trouble, but despite the wonder of Turbo Loaders, there is also the terror of them failing at the same time ...</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpIN7iA8TM4S-bxi1vSfJMCM7WcGaG1FI7gFOZt-_zWW488eFCMitiNZjOoZ008wkdmYrfBYUSoLkRdCsURghWt-bVk569DbkvEaXTJ-FN0e9jhF-xd_5NOFmbCK8sq8ShZz7kVIgjvN4/s1600/m-024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpIN7iA8TM4S-bxi1vSfJMCM7WcGaG1FI7gFOZt-_zWW488eFCMitiNZjOoZ008wkdmYrfBYUSoLkRdCsURghWt-bVk569DbkvEaXTJ-FN0e9jhF-xd_5NOFmbCK8sq8ShZz7kVIgjvN4/s1600/m-024.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Just two for you this time, in between my rant about Turbo Loaders ...</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic Added Dimension ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Storm Bringer</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dragon Skulle</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I have some favourite Turbo Loaders and also some most hated ones, more so for their total failure in my experience on certain C2N Tape Decks. Don't get me wrong, Commodore's ROM Loader is fine on smaller games and programs, but we must praise Turbo Loaders !</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Favourite</i> [ <b>3</b> ] ::</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1 : Burner ( Mastertronic )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2 : Novaload ( US Gold and Ocean )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">3 : Bleepload ( Firebird )</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Worst</i> [ <b>3</b> ] ::</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1 : Cyberload ( System 3 ) - Why ? : Some Backup Cartridges needed to be removed in order to play the game.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2 : Wildsave ( Thalamus ) - Why ? : The Loader is way too sensitive on certain C2N Tape Decks. I hated those thin multi-coloured lines when the loading failed ! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">3 : Virgin Loader ( Virgin ) - Why ? : Multi-coloured lines of pure hatred on load errors !</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">One of the two games from this batch, <i>Dragon Skulle</i>, has quite a long loading time. Counter 149, that's about 5-6 mins or maybe a bit more. Quite a chunky wait after a loading screen ! Some of Mastertronic's Ricochet releases have <b>Invade-a-load</b> and when the game has loaded you can see the decrunching process happen, as characters change colour and go slightly corrupt. Does this mean the original game was frozen and then restarted with a JSR e.g. ( $4000 ) ?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Anyway, the current collected total so far is ... 180 !</span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1749989883000528434.post-78084120469893934192011-10-08T05:49:00.000-07:002011-10-08T05:49:59.004-07:00Batch 19 : You just can't Beat-It !<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">N-i-n-e-t-e-e-n ! A line from Paul Hardcastles' 19 is more difficult to write in words, than it is pronoucing it verbally. So, just take yourself back to when you first heard the track and then go and listen to it on YouTube, is it how you remember it ?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Anyhow, it is Batch 19 with a few shoot'em ups and a real classic, <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Kidd">Eddie Kidd</a> Jump Challenge</i>. Loosely based on the British equivalent of the USA Stuntman, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evel_Knievel"><i>Evel Kenievel</i></a></span>.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLxNjuJePnw7LTrKM6BwcgvYrWA6GL4vJa8IhyIEfKg6uLc3tIXCDh0Vmb3ejplAaZbDQF0vffR1sVf9MxHTr49o0oyRYhNLUyfS_i3wDtCgeZjbSu8czcwwcK79QGcbRlrFxEaM6cQqM/s1600/m-023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLxNjuJePnw7LTrKM6BwcgvYrWA6GL4vJa8IhyIEfKg6uLc3tIXCDh0Vmb3ejplAaZbDQF0vffR1sVf9MxHTr49o0oyRYhNLUyfS_i3wDtCgeZjbSu8czcwwcK79QGcbRlrFxEaM6cQqM/s1600/m-023.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Beat-it </i>or rather <i>Jammin' II</i> is a pretty good game, where you must collect notes and use Escalator type areas on the level to reach them. <i>Die Alien Slime</i> felt like an enhanced Shoot'em up Construction Kit game. Though, there is nothing wrong with that, I could help feeling a reminder of this when playing it. Again, Try and check out some or all of the games that appear in the <b>All About Mastertronic</b> <i>Blog</i>, you are sure to find something of interest.</span><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Beat-it, Frenesis, Starforce Fighter, Starlifter and Zzzz.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mastertronic Plus ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Die Alien Slime and Mindtrap.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ricochet ::</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Aliens and Eddie Kidd Jump Challenge.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Batch 20 won't be far off ... </span>Alex Arishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09495415061897599638noreply@blogger.com0